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The Star, Community College of Denverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s student run Journal of
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platform of expression available to all CCD students. We adhere
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the star

fall 2017

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the star

Editors Note
Our Final Thoughts On This Edition.

editor in chief, alisha nikodemus

Strengths

Creativity. Innovative Minds. Strong Ideas.

Challenges

Communication. Staying on the Same Page.

Hopes for
our Readers

They Will Be Inspired to Tell Their
Stories. They will Show the World
Their Talent.

photo editor in chief, jonathan hidalgo

Strengths

Raising the Bar. Changing the Meta.
Paving a Road for the Future.

Challenges

Uniformity. Finding the Balance.

Hopes for
our Readers

They Will Capture the Moments. Their
Perception Will Break Walls.

Thank You
We would like to specifically thank our editors for their hard
work, dedication, and creativity. Additionally, we would like
to give a special thanks to Kristi Strother and Lisa Erickson for
their mentorship, support, and guidance throughout the editorial
process this semester. The entire editor team is grateful for the
continued support we receive from faculty, administrators, and
especially from our biggest supporters Christa Saracco and the
President of CCD, Dr. Everette Freeman.

fall 2017

5

contents

8.
14.
20.
26.

cheap or just cheapened
alex hopkins

reducing implicit bias
and discrimination in the
united states
jill porzio

entering the Domo, I was
greeted warmly by a mother-like hostess;
she doted on me as I was the first patron
to enter the restaurant. She immediately
asked if I’d been to the restaurant before,
and if I had any dietary restrictions,
such as strict vegetarianism. I found this
quality extremely accommodating.
The Domo has a cabin home appeal
to it, and as soon as a you enter the
dining area, roars from the kitchen

I noticed that the prices were average
for a lunch fare, which is not something
I expected for authentic Japanese cuisine
in Denver. I assumed the dishes must be
tiny due to the more affordable prices.
I was wrong, when my entrée of House
Teriyaki Salmon came to the table.
Although the use of a lunch tray was
not aesthetically pleasing, it boasted the
question; how else could you get this
copious amount of food delivered to you?
I first ordered the Edamame Appetizer
with Cajun salt, it was delicious, but as
with all edamame, it was not warm for
long. This did not matter, as by the time

it so quickly; I even debated on ordering
another right then and there, so I could
savor its deliciousness another time.
Food quality for its price is unparalleled
to any other Japanese restaurants in the
Denver area. For an appetizer, entrée,
three sides included, and a soda, I spent
$20 and still ended up leaving with
leftovers. It is not often that one can find
mouthwatering dishes at low prices.
Even though the character of the
restaurant was compromised with the
‘gimmickyness’ of it, the exceptional
food alone stands to be reason enough
to continue to visit the Domo. Next time

There were several flyers dedicated
to t-shirt sales, or other charities
that they donate to, asking patrons to
donate as well. These advertisements,
though small, indubitably took
away from the atmosphere that
had been so lovingly established.
erupt, reminding a reminiscent feel of
relatives in your home kitchen gearing
up to prepare a love filled meal.
The minute you walk into the dining
room, it’s as though you’ve entered a
calming Japanese forest, complete with
log seating and tables, setting you up
for a calming and relaxed experience.
Interestingly, the ambiance is slightly
Cracker-Barrelesque as there are eclectic
collections of teapots and small hand
painted Japanese style Russian nesting
dolls, perched upon window sills that
face the award-winning garden.
I was seated facing the window
on both visits, as it was too cold to
sit outside. I didn’t get to enjoy the
garden, housed in a courtyard. I was
however delighted to be able to take
pleasure in the serenity of the view.
fall 2017

it started to cool down, my meal was
delivered. And I was excited to eat.
As I sat chewing, and taking in the
entire experience of the restaurant, I
noticed small distractions from the aura
of serene Japanese forest grove. There
were several flyers dedicated to t-shirt
sales, or other charities that they donate
to, asking patrons to donate as well. These
advertisements, though small, indubitably
took away from the atmosphere that had
been so lovingly established. The ads
basked the overall experience with a
cheapened feel, demeaning the ambiance of
the intended Japanese style in The Domo.
Despite the depreciated feel and the
low prices of the cuisine, the food was
delectable. The Teriyaki Marinated Salmon
left such an exquisite taste on my tongue
that I knew I would be back. I devoured

I go, I plan to sit outside, and perhaps
they can redeem the dream of the serene
Japanese feel it was hoping to maintain.
the positives: Delectable
dishes that will ‘bargain more
than a bang’ for your buck.
the negatives: The CrackerBarrel like atmosphere detracts from The
Domo’s traditionally intended ambiance.
DON’T MISS: The house teriyaki
sauce, no matter your meat selection, this
sauce is the perfect amount of savory
and sweet to indulge your taste buds.
Details: If you are a strict vegetarian or
vegan, this is not the restaurant for you. Be
sure to check out the garden at least once!
THE DOMO IS LOCATED AT 1365
OSAGE ST, DENVER, CO 80204.
THE LUNCH HOURS ARE 11:00 AM TO
2:00 PM AND DINNER IS 5:00 PM TO
10:00 PM; OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK.

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artwork by guillermo andazola

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the star

fall 2017

11

artwork by sena bryant

In 1965, Martin Luther King Jr. said,

“I can see nothing
more urgent than
for America to work
passionately and
unrelentingly
to get rid of the
disease of racism.”
by Jill Porzio
OUR COUNTRY HAS THANKFULLY OVERCOME SOME OF THE
violent and more blatant discrimination we saw in
the 1960’s, and we have become less tolerant of such
explicit prejudice and stereotypes in our society today.
Despite these changes, we continue to see discrimination strongly affecting many individuals’ basic human
rights. This is often seen through an implicit bias, an
unconscious or indirect prejudice one has towards a
specific group of people depending on race, gender,
or culture. I believe that by creating and promoting
more interaction and communication between diverse
groups in our country, we will continue to break down
these barriers, dilute negative perceptions caused by
implicit bias, and finally rid this country from the
disease of prejudice and discrimination that plagues it.
The implicit association test (IAT), developed by
three scientists in 1998, is largely used by researches,
and claims to measure a person’s implicit bias through
a course of pictures. It is believed the response time
between seeing these pictures and hitting the correct
key associated with that picture somehow relates to
our implicit bias in real life. I noticed when I participated in the test myself my response time increased
as I became more comfortable and familiar with the
pictures being shown. They (the creators of the IAT)
are presuming the cognitive thought given to hitting
the correct key to be an implicit bias. I feel this is a
dangerous assumption that might increase implicit
fall 2017

bias by having people focus on differences, rather than
effectively work towards decreasing those perceptions.
I participated in the test twice, receiving different
results each time. Because of this, and the numerous factors that could influence the response time, I
found this test completely irrelevant and ineffective
at providing any real change in prejudicial behavior.
Many people feel that implicit bias, or unconscious attitudes towards others, does not affect our
behavior. Although I do not believe the IAT test to
be an accurate measure of implicit bias, I do believe
implicit bias influences stereotypes, which then leads
to prejudice and discrimination in our society. An
interesting article, Intergroup Disparities and Implicit
Bias: A Commentary, discusses the findings of a study
examining the disparate outcomes resulting from
implicit bias. Through this study, they found large
inequalities resulting from implicit bias, leading to
heightened racial and gender prejudice in our legal
system, health care, and employment opportunities.
These biases directly affect the health, livelihoods,
and basic human rights of minorities in our country.
Numerous studies have shown the incredible disparities regarding the inequality minorities face in our
justice system. This increasing problem is discussed
by the National Research Council in, The Growth of
Incarceration in the United States: Exploring Causes
and Consequences. The authors thoroughly discuss
15

I believe to create an effective and dramatic
change in our society; we simply need to
become more familiar with each other.

the racial bias seen in our prisons and throughout the
judicial process, and how this has continued to affect
our country. A group called The Sentencing Project is
working diligently towards changing our perceptions
about crime and punishment in our country through
education and community involvement. The group is
directed by Marc Mauer, a well-known author who is
considered an expert on bias shown against minorities
in sentencing procedures and our criminal justice system. Many of the alarming facts and statistics posted by
The Sentencing Project are taken from a study conducted by the National Research Council. The Sentencing
Project and the National Research Council’s study
show the implicit racial bias and disparities affecting
minorities throughout the criminal justice process, and
how our sentencing procedures are counterproductive.
I believe to create an effective and dramatic change
in our society; we simply need to become more familiar
with each other. A study was done with the idea of
improving explicit and implicit bias with positive interaction between diverse groups in, Reducing Implicit
Prejudice by Blurring Intergroup Boundaries. The
change in perception that comes from seeing similarities rather than differences, creates a better understanding of each other, reduces implicit bias, and is shown
to decrease stereotypes, prejudice, and discrimination.
We are often unaware of the implicit bias we have
towards others who we feel are different from us. These
unconscious thoughts and feelings often lead to stereotypes, which results in the discriminating behavior that
continues to profoundly impact our country. As a society, we continue to struggle for equality and the basic
human rights we are all entitled to have in this country.

It is time we change our perception as a society, and
as Americans, to lead by example and show the world
how to fight for each other, not against each other.
References:
Fisher, E. L., & Borgida, E. (2012).
Intergroup Disparities and Implicit
Bias: A Commentary. Journal Of
Social Issues, 68(2), 385-398.
Greenwald, T., Mahzarin, B., & Nosek, B. (1998).
Implicit Association Test. Project Implicit.
Copyright 2011 Project Implicit.
Hall, N. R., Crisp, R. J., & Mein-woei, S. (2009).
Reducing Implicit Prejudice by Blurring
Intergroup Boundaries. Basic & Applied
Social Psychology, 31(3), 244-254.
King, Martin Luther, Jr. (1965). Oberlin College
Commencement. Oberlin Alumni Magazine.
61(6). August 1965. Copyright 2014
The King Center.
National Research Council. (2014). The Growth of
Incarceration in the United States: Exploring
Causes and Consequences. Committee on
Causes and Consequences of High Rates of
Incarceration, J. Travis, B. Western, and S.
Redburn, Editors. Committee on Law and Justice,
Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and
Education. Washington, DC: The National
Academies Press.
The Sentencing Project. www.sentencingproject.org.
Copyright 2017 The Sentencing Project.

fall 2017

artwork by daniel ferry

17

arrowhead by jonathan hidalgo

18

the star

wait by roberto alba

fall 2017

19

Inside
Colorado
Public
Radio
with Nathan Heﬀel
By Katherine LePree
DURING MY VISIT TO COLORADO PUBLIC RADIO
(CPR), I discussed the field of journalism
with Nathan Heffel, host of Colorado
Matters. Heffel has excelled in journalistic
work for about a decade and believes his
path in this profession has been rewarding
to date. We shared a conversation, which
provided a magnified look at Heffel’s
past and present in journalism, as well as
some guidance for journalism hopefuls.

What initiated your
professional path
into the journalism
industry?
I came to radio; it was really where I
entered into the journalism field. It wasn’t
like I went and did a newspaper or things
like that. I did some stuff with WLFM
at Lawrence [University], which was a
student-run radio station. Getting into
fall 2017

journalism came out of my first job in radio
at KYGO [Denver], the country station.
I was working on the morning show with
Kelly, Mudflap and Jojo. But there was a
woman, Simone, who was their newsperson
and she needed some help in the morning;
and so I started to work with her, putting
together newscasts. She had access to
AP news, to CNN news, all this access
to all these wire reports…so she really
helped me to start to design newscasts
and understand how that worked. When I
moved into my next position, I was able
to bring that skill on board: After KYGO,
because I went to KUVO, which is the
jazz station here in Denver, I worked as
an unpaid intern for about a year or so.
Then they brought a show on called The
Takeaway, by Public Radio International.
It’s a news show and they wanted to debut
it in Colorado, so they chose KUVO to do
it. My boss was like, “You seem to know
what you’re talking about, you’ve got a

pretty good understanding of world events,
and you can do a newscast. Let’s throw
you in there and be our news manager.”
So I worked with him and we basically
created the local breaks for The Takeaway
in Denver, which was my first real attempt
to get into the news aspect of things. I
was an on-air host with Carlos Lando, and
then I was also kind of a producer in the
background. That was really the first step
I took from what I was doing at KYGO…
to really getting into the news aspect of it.

When you spoke on
radio for the first
time, what was it like
to hear yourself?
Not nearly as ‘cringeworthy’ as some
people think it would be. I loved
it. It was like, this is so cool! I’m
on the air! It was electrifying.
21

What do you
enjoy most
about the news
industry?
It is always changing. There is
always news. Even on a slow
news day, when we’re in the
office and there’s “nothing
happening,” there is something
happening. There’s always a
story to tell. There’s always
a piece of information that
we can find that will lead to a
bigger story. I love that. I have
a passion for that, a passion for
finding the stories that people
haven’t heard yet, or if they
heard they haven’t heard it in
this way. I love the research I
get to do, I love meeting the
people, and I love chatting with
someone who I would never
have chatted with on the street.

22

What do you
enjoy most
about your
current
position [ as host ]
at CPR?

In your line of
work, what
makes a great
story?

At least for an interview, we
have to have something called
What I love about this [job]
“the arc.” Any story has an
is that I’m able to have a
arc – beginning, middle and
conversation with people…
end. A good story...it has to be
it’s like sitting down for a
Colorado centric, at least for
cup of coffee with a friend.
our show. It has to actually
Some of the interviews I do
provide some sort of context
are really intense. I did one
for the listener. We wouldn’t
recently about transgender
just have Justin Bieber on
rights issues and it was intense. because he’s in Colorado; there
But the conversation still was,
has to be some connection
“I’m able to ask you a pointed
there. It has to be compelling
question;” “it’s not like I’m
radio – compelling in terms
attacking you;” “it’s not like I’m of, “I didn’t know that before”
lashing out;” “I’m just saying,
or “this got us thinking.”
we’re in this conversation
together;” or “I don’t get this.
You need to answer this.”

the star

Tell me about
a favorite
story you have
covered in
your career.
There’s so many.
One of my earliest stories I
did was I covered one of the
final flights of the Liberty Bell
B-52, one of the big World War
II planes. This was so cool!
I just had my press pass and
I was like, “whatever!” It’s a
horribly produced piece. I did
it all myself…but it got to the
fact that I was able to be with
some of these final World War
II veterans who aren’t alive
anymore. And we actually took
the plane. I actually have the
sound of the plane turning over
and the guy on the plane going,
“I can remember dropping
the bombs.” That’s one of my
favorites because it was one
of my firsts. I was testing my
wings, no pun intended.

fall 2017

What has been
your favorite
interview?
It was just recently...it was
about this class at Regis
University called “Stories From
Wartime,” and I interviewed
two Afghanistan war veterans.
The interview was taped and it
got off to a really rocky start –
they were uncomfortable, they
didn’t get it. They were like,
“I’m really nervous,” and “well,
you know, war is tough.” They
were being very – not cagey, but
just – they weren’t polished at
all. We took about an hour and
10 minutes to interview them.
But through that interview,
and probing of my questions
with them, they opened up.
This gentleman talked about
his suicide attempts, seeing
bodies and experiencing the
drama of war. Just hearing that
in his voice – how he got to
the brink of suicide, or falling
apart because of what he saw
over there and how he’s trying
to figure this out and figure his
life out…the other gentleman
as well, same thing. By the
end of the interview, they were
so casual and comfortable.
They were talking about
something they would probably
never tell anyone else.

What advice
would you give
to someone
trying to
succeed in the
journalism
field?
That’s a great question.
I love that question.
Just based on my experience,
you’ve got to be willing to
get your hands really dirty
and be willing to work really
hard for little or no pay. When
I was coming up, I worked
for a while without pay, I
worked for a while with very
poor pay and I worked for
a while as a volunteer. You
just have to always be willing
to learn, always be open to
learning something new and
not think, “Well this isn’t how
I learned it.” Well that doesn’t
matter now; this is how we’re
teaching you to do this.
Be willing to make mistakes.
Be willing to understand that
sometimes, everything’s going
to go really crappy; but there’s
always success in that…
and you will do that. Just be
really open to that idea.

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the star

photgraphy by irving martinez

fall 2017

25

awarded best of article

One of the things that has always fascinated
me about America is the multitude of
different experiences that are contained
within one country. A person who grows
up in New York City will have a vastly
different experience than one who grows up
in rural Texas, yet we as a people are bound
together by common human experiences.

by jesse nuese yaker
I LEARNED THIS IN AN EXCEPTIONALLY VISCERAL
way during my time in the military.
An infantry platoon in the US Army
is one of the most powerful examples of
America’s strength through diversity, with
men from all over the country from many
different walks of life coming together to
participate in the ultimate problem solving
exercise, combat. I served as a paratrooper in the storied 82nd Airborne Division, a
unit that has seen combat in every significant American conflict since World War 1.
My platoon had Texan gunslingers, Missouri
rednecks, and New York gangbangers. Our
fraternity of blood contained Christians,
Jews, Mormons, and Atheists. Crammed
close together in foxholes full of mud and
rain, it was not, perhaps, the multicultural
politically correct utopia of liberal imagination, with jokes and jabs about race, religion, and origin flowing constantly. But underneath those barbs was the deep, unabated
love of men who would lay down their lives
in defense of each other and in defense of
the American ideal that people should be
able to live their lives according to their
own beliefs. This was a group of men that
were there for one another in any firefight,
any breakup, any personal crisis of faith. We
saw each other as Americans, paratroopers,
and brothers first, rather than Republicans
or Democrats. I joined the Army at nineteen
fall 2017

and went to war at my country’s request at
twenty. It would be these deeply transformative experiences that laid the framework for
my personal belief in the American people.
The US Army is a rigid hierarchy, with
clearly defined rules, customs, and sharply
drawn lines. Uniforms are standardized to
the inch and Army values are shared and
codified in creeds of every kind. You can
meet another soldier, and regardless of gender, race, religion, or sexuality, you know
how to treat that soldier based on the rank
on his or her chest, the awards over his
or her heart, and the patches on his or her
shoulders. The military is insulated from
society at large, having its own language
and values. The mission comes first, before
anyone’s feelings or aspirations. In this environment, the welfare of the group will always come before the welfare of one’s self.
This sharply defined world is where I came
of age, learning about my own capabilities
and growing from a lanky teenager into
a self-assured combat veteran and leader.
When you grow up in this world, where doing the right thing is black or white, it can be
easy to mistake the real world for being the
same way. It’s easy to know you are on the
right side when you are fighting the Taliban,
who throw acid in the faces of young girls
on their way to school, or ISIS, who has
made their name beheading journalists.

I left the Army in March 2016, smack in
the middle of one of the most divisive elections in our nation’s history. When I stepped
back into this bitterly divided society, suddenly I no longer knew who was on the right
side. I was unmoored in a strange world that
I didn’t understand. Little things that would
never have flown in Army life, like being late
or dishonest, made me unreasonably angry.
I had spent years going through life according to what I thought was a commonly accepted set of rules, but in the civilian world
everyone lives according to his or her own
code. The media whirlwind around Donald
Trump, Bernie Sanders, Hillary Clinton,
their drastically different sets of values and
the tribalism surrounding them made it even
harder to understand where I fit into this new
version of America, a version that was so
different from the one I had grown used to.
After transitioning from a world where the
needs of the group were put above the needs
of the individual to a world that seemed to
be losing its collective mind, I was desperately looking for something to believe in.
I went to Standing Rock in search of
something that was easy to believe in, a pillar
of righteousness in a nation going mad. What
I found instead was a swirling, careening,
dystopian conflict that encapsulated both our
nation’s best and worst qualities. What I saw
on the news about Standing Rock appeared
27

straightforwardly wrong. A
private corporation building a
dangerous, leaky oil pipeline
directly through a sacred burial ground seemed to go against
a basic American creed that all
people should be able to worship
how they choose, uninhibited.
The most alarming fact about
the Dakota Access Pipeline is
that it was originally planned
to pass north of Standing Rock,
not through any tribal lands,
but close to the primarily white
city of Bismarck, but the risk
of oil spill was deemed too
high, and as such, it was rerouted through land that belong to
the Standing Rock Sioux under the Treaty of Fort Laramie.
For hundreds of years,
Native Americans have been
marginalized and treated as less
than, making it all the more
shocking that in the modern
age of 2016, they were still the
target of injustice. I think about
the rage I would feel if a private
business were to build an oil
pipeline through the middle of
Arlington National Cemetery or
the Vietnam Veterans Memorial
Wall. We see photos of mass
graves from the Holocaust and
are horrified at the indignity of
denying human beings a proper
resting place. The places where

28

we lay our dead are places of
reflection and remembrance. To
deny a people the right to bury
their sacred dead is to deny their
very humanity. That this could
happen in a country that declares
all men equal is jarring and flies
in the face of everything I have

There is a great and
terrible beauty in
America. We are
a country that has
beaten fascism in
Europe, sent the first
humans to the moon,
and yet we are also
a country that has
enslaved people of
color and practiced
genocide on Native
Americans.
ever believed about my country.
This sense of injustice, combined with my own personal,
desperate search for a higher purpose outside of the Army, would
lead me to North Dakota in the
dead, numbing heart of winter.
I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have much of a plan,
but I had a plane ticket and a duffel bag. Everyone on the plane
was clearly headed for Standing

Rock. Veterans and civilians
alike crowded into a plane that
was full to the brim. There were
men and women, veterans from
every war, young and old, and
the cabin bubbled with conversation. We landed in Bismarck and
people were left to find their own
way to Standing Rock, which
was about an hour drive away.
I hitched a ride with a professor
of Native American studies who
had the foresight to rent a car. Me
and 4 other strangers piled into
an SUV and headed out towards
the camp. In less extraordinary
times, the drive to Standing
Rock could take fifteen minutes,
but the police had shut down the
northernmost road towards the
camp, forcing would-be protesters to drive almost an hour to
access the camp from the south.
North Dakota is beautiful in
the winter, full of rolling hills
covered in snow. The reservation itself was bleak and poor.
Small, rickety wooden shacks
propped up with plywood sat on
every corner, with broken down
rusting cars and dogs on chains
loitering in lawns. It was the
most obviously poor place I had
ever been in the United States.
When
I
deployed
to
Afghanistan, I expected abject
poverty, and it was easy to find.

the star

I starkly remember Afghan children running up a hill that we
had just shot hundreds of bullets into, to pick up the little the
bits of brass left behind to sell
for scrap metal. People lived
in huts made of mud, with little running water or electricity,
and we often saw them bathing
in rivers. I grew up comfortably
in middle class America, so I
had never seen poverty like this
up close and personal, but I expected it, as I was in one of the
poorest, war-torn nations in the
world. Where I did not expect to
find it, was in a beautiful, shivering corner of my own country.
Wild but friendly reservation
dogs were everywhere, loitering about. I spent a night in the
gymnasium of a run-down middle school. The paint was peeling and everything was clearly
built in the 1970’s or earlier.
There were only 4 classrooms
and none of them had windows.
I reflected on my own educational past, full of artsy private
schools and then later, a brightly
painted, modern, suburban high
school with computers in every
room and a football field with
crisp green grass and painted
end zones. My youth was brimming with teachers, coaches and
parents who encouraged me to

fall 2017

be whatever I wanted. It was an
environment that was fraught
with typical youthful indiscretion but ultimately affirmed my
worthiness to participate in the
American Dream. Get good
grades, go to school, contribute,
I was taught. All the while, the

The Oceti Sakowin
Camp is the main
camp, probably the
one you’ve seen on
TV. Thousands of
native people from
tribes all over the
world congregated
there in opposition
to the Dakota Access
Pipeline, known
around camp as the
black snake.
facilities and resources represented a tacit endorsement of the
idea that I was worthy of having
society invest in my future. That
was decidedly not the message
sent by this school. This school
personified neglect, down to the
deflated basketball that sat stuck
to the floor in a corner. Native
American teenagers aren’t any
less worthy of investment than

a white teenager in Wisconsin.
The school struck me close to
the heart, another wound to the
body of my own romantic notions of what it meant to be an
American and who was allowed
access to the American Dream.
The reservation was centered
around a casino, the heartbeat of
the local economy. We would eat
breakfast there as it was one of
the only places in town to get a
hot meal. It was there I would
meet a seventy-year-old Vietnam
veteran from Boston named
Dan. Dan drove to North Dakota
by himself, sleeping in his car in
order to stand up for what he believed in. He was a short, stocky
man with one pierced ear, but he
exuded kindness and warmth. I
knew Dan for only a few days,
but his perspective and example
will be one I will never forget.
He told me of a relatively young
nation, gifted with great success
and faced with epic struggle.
The ever-present human flaws
of greed and brutality will lead
people to oppose the freedoms
supposedly inherent to America,
he told me, and there will always be a struggle, a spiritual
warfare between the free people of America and those who
would seek to undermine that
freedom to suit their own greed.

29

There is a great and terrible
beauty in America. We are a
country that has beaten fascism
in Europe, sent the first humans
to the moon, and yet we are also a
country that has enslaved people
of color and practiced genocide
on Native Americans. We carry
will always carry these contradictions with us. Freedom is not
promised. It is the responsibility of every new generation of
Americans to continue to participate in this struggle, to hold our
society and government to our
founding ideals, and to ensure
our children and grandchildren
will live in a free, just world.
The Oceti Sakowin Camp is
the main camp, probably the one
youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve seen on TV. Thousands
of native people from tribes
all over the world congregated
there in opposition to the Dakota
Access Pipeline, known around
camp as the Black Snake. It was a
frenzied, sprawling combination
of green standard issue Army
tents, RVs, airstream trailers
and tepees. There were vehicles
everywhere, trucks and jeeps,
and even a coach bus stuck in
the middle of the camp, wheels
spinning free on the packed ice.
Young Native American men

30

ambled about on horseback, ancient warriors juxtaposed with
the high pitched modern whine
of the surveillance drone hovering overhead. Cell phone service
was sparse and people skittered
to and fro, attending meetings
on what to do if you were ar-

The juxtaposition
between the new
and the old, the
traditional and the
modern, was stark
and in your face.
rested, chopping wood, and
cooking in communal kitchens.
The juxtaposition between
the new and the old, the traditional and the modern, was stark
and in your face. Ford trucks
were parked next to tepees, with
ancient Native American flags
standing next to Gadsden flags.
Police in riot gear stared down
old women in traditional Native
American garb. I was struck by
how many different kinds of people there were in the camp. There
were hippies with bleached
dreadlocks that fell past their
waists and tall, broad men with
shaved heads. One of the things

that made me the proudest was
meeting fellow 82nd Airborne
paratroopers from every war
from Vietnam to Afghanistan,
several of them standing out in
the crowd by wearing our distinctive maroon beret. I met
professors from universities all
across the country, suburban
housewives, veterans from every war, and Native Americans
from every tribe and corner of
the country. These people represented a nationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s collective conscience that was crying out, and
the diversity of the people there
ultimately represented one of
the great strengths of our nation.
On December 4, the US
Army Corps of Engineers announced that the pipeline would
be delayed in order to conduct
more research on its environmental impact. I had only been
in Standing Rock for a few days.
The camp turned jubilant, with
fireworks exploding in the air.
A great victory was declared
and Native Americans broke out
into traditional song and dance.
Cries of Mni Wiconi, or Water
is Life, echoed through the night
sky. The news had spread slowly through the camp, first met
with skepticism and then with

the star

jubilation when the tribal leadership confirmed that it was real.
All the veterans congregated
the next morning at the casino.
There was a ceremony conducted by tribal leaders blessing us
and thanking us for our help.
There were moving speeches
and songs of victory were sung.
With our mission over, and a
brutal snowstorm moving in, the
tribal leaders asked us to leave
the reservation to allow for a
de-escalation of the situation.
I went back to Bismarck for
1 night before flying home. I ate
at a Mexican restaurant run by
a small family, and upon hearing that I was a veteran leaving
Standing Rock, they refused to
let me pay for my food. I realized the solidarity that this
family of immigrants felt with
the people of Standing Rock
was rooted in the shared experiences and injustices that had
been visited against them as
well. The idea that the indignities visited upon the Native
American people were not exclusive to them, but were parallel to the struggles of many
people of color in America, was
jarring. This revelation further
accentuated the deepening rift

fall 2017

between the country I believe
in and the country I live in.
Standing Rock and the injustices that occurred there
represent a continuation of the
brutal mistakes and injustices
we have made and perpetuated throughout our history, but I

A great victory was
declared and Native
Americans broke out
into traditional song
and dance. Cries
of Mni Wiconi, or
Water is Life, echoed
through the night sky.
cannot ignore that the Veterans
march on Standing Rock also
stands for the values that make
me so proud to be an American.
Thousands of people from all
over the country, people of every
color and creed came together to
stand up for freedom and against
injustice. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the ability of our
people to self-correct, to recognize when we are failing to live
up to our creed, and then to spill
sweat, blood and tears in order
to live up to the eternal idea that
all are created equal that gives

me eternal hope for our nation.
6 weeks after I left Standing
Rock, and 4 days after he was
inaugurated, President Trump
signed an executive order advancing the construction of the
pipeline. I vehemently disagree
with this decision, and it serves
as a reminder that our nation is
far from perfect, and that there
are Americans who face overt
oppression within our borders.
I also believe in the ability of
the American people to make
this nation a more just place in
line with our founding ideals.
The people of this country, from
the paratroopers of the 82nd
Airborne Division to the beatnik hippies of Standing Rock,
have never ceased to amaze me
with their compassion and grit,
their openness and willingness
to sacrifice for something greater than themselves. My view of
America continues to change
and grow, and while it is no
longer the wide-eyed adoration of my youth, I still love it
with the heart of a parent who
hopes to see a wayward teenager grow into everything he
or she are capable of. America
is young and full of contradictions, but then again, so am I.

31

32

the star

blue haze by paola scharberg

fall 2017

33

34

the star

photography by jacob uftkes

by krystn powers
PEOPLE HAVE BEEN BREWING BEER, FERMENTING
wine, and drinking socially for millennia.
From ancient religious festivals to medieval inns and taverns, to the bars, pubs,
craft breweries and other tasting rooms of
today, the act of people coming together to
imbibe and share stories is timeless and has
evolved into a culture all its own. In fact,
bar culture is not only socially acceptable,
but is also so socially ingrained that bars
have become common backdrops and
plot devices in countless stories across all
different genres and types of media, from
Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales
to the television show Cheers and beyond.
And yet, thanks to advances in technology, people no longer need to seek out common spaces in order to connect with one
another. Telephones and the internet allow
people to communicate instantaneously, regardless of physical distance. Social media
websites allow users to broadcast thoughts,
fall 2017

opinions, and experiences to a mass audience with a few clicks and keystrokes. Now
with smartphones, people have constant
access to the benefits of technological
advances via the mini-computers they
carry with them at all times in their purses
and pockets. Smartphones link people and
make them thoroughly accessible to each
other through many different platforms.
The ability to connect to others is
fundamental to human survival, and
technology has undoubtedly enhanced
the ways in which people can connect to
each other. The smartphone, in particular,
is harmful to traditional bar culture because it distracts people from meaningful
face-to-face interactions and stifles the
banter that is pivotal to (and used to be
so characteristic of) barroom discourse.
My boyfriend compares being a regular
at a bar to being a member of a church:
bars are community places where people

find and make friends with whom they can
celebrate in times of joy and upon whom
they can lean in times of need and sorrow.
Bars are places where people go to feel part
of something bigger than themselves, and
people choose bars instead of other public
spaces because of the social lubricant that
is alcohol. The thirst for alcohol, however,
is secondary to the thirst for camaraderie.
People primarily go to bars to seek out and
enjoy the company of others. Or to put
another way, “Sometimes you want to go/
Where everbody knows your name,/ and
they’re always glad you came” (Portnoy).
As a bartender, I cannot count the
number of times I look down my bar and
see that half of the people sitting there are
staring at the tiny screens they brought with
them rather than engaging with the people
around them. So often bar patrons are more
engrossed with the virtual lives of their
friends on social media than inquisitive
35

about the people sitting beside
them. They display more interest in
the newsfeed on their smartphones
than in discussing current events
with their compatriots. While bar
patrons may think that their social
needs are still being met this way,
they are missing out on the spontaneity that verbal discussion with
another human being yields.
By definition, socializing is not
an individual activity, so for a person to sit at a bar and pay attention
only to his or her smartphone is
to demean the bar-as-social-space
paradigm. To choose to focus on
a selectively portrayed Facebook
profile or a heavily edited article
rather than hold a conversation
with a fellow human is to deprive
him or her of the rich variety of
perspectives outside his or her usual
fodder. It is to disregard the very
forum that he or she sought out in
going to the bar in the first place.
Even when people do put down
their smartphones and engage with
each other, their pocket computers
do not sit idle for long. People, rather, have their mobile devices ready
to recall a trivial bit of information
that reinforces one point that has

36

been made or disproves another.
While the ability to gather facts and
verify information is a positive skill,
the immediacy with which it can
be done often hinders a discussion
from ever fully getting underway.
Building on the idea that socializing
is a fundamental part of bar culture
and that person-to-person conversation can expand oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s scope of
perspective, and allowing a conversation to unfold organically is paramount. The exchange of stimulating
ideas and experiences, the desire to
relate to another person or a small
audience, and the satisfaction of
immediate and revelatory feedback
are the gratifying takeaways from
barroom banter. If, as mentioned
before, the desire for alcohol is
secondary, then the need to look
up facts and validate arguments
is tertiary at best in traditional bar
culture. This is an activity that one
can do on his or her own when
reflecting on the conversation or
experience afterward. But without
the discussion in the first place, a
person has less to contemplate later.
The importance of the many
ways in which technology, specifically the smartphone, fosters human

interconnectivity on a global scale
cannot be overstated. However,
traditional bar culture does not
operate on a global scale. Quite the
opposite, bar culture deals with the
relatively few people who inhabit
a shared space for a while together over libations. A smartphone,
for all of the apps and functions it
may possess, can no more laugh
at a joke or give a conciliatory pat
on the back than it can offer up an
impromptu and relevant cheers. It
is a tool, an inanimate object that
cannot replace the social experience
of having a conversation in real
time with another person who is
in the same room. Therefore, out
of respect for fellow bar patrons
and a culture that has been centuries in the making, a smartphone
in a bar is best powered down and
tucked away in a pocket or purse
where it cannot impede the interpersonal interactions of its owner.
Works Cited
Portnoy, Gary. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Where Everybody
Knows Your Name.â&#x20AC;? Music
from Cheers, Earthtone, 1983.

by carousel reed
“This shit is hard, but
that’s the beauty of
it, beauty behind the
struggle. Things will
fall into place. Keep
your head up and stay
in the game!”
Derrick E. Ratcliff (Chop)
October 9th, 1989 - May 10th, 2017 (age 27)

WORDS OF AN HONORABLE, WISE MAN. I KEEP
trying to put his words into play, into
existence again. Someone who always gave
great advice, but will never be able to give
it again. Gone, like a drunk singing his life
away. I ask God, “Why do bad things happen to good people? Is there an answer?”
I had never met someone like him
before, and I don’t think I ever will again.
A heart of pure gold, he showed me many
things about myself. I remember being at
his little brother’s house, drifting off to
sleep on the couch. I felt someone take
off my shoes and yell to get me a pillow
and blanket. That’s when I started to get to
know him. He taught me things not only
about myself, but about others and life. I
used to think that life wasn’t fair, but it is.
Everything in life has a mission, pattern, or
story. My life can be very chaotic, but with
his words replaying in my mind, I strive!
Gone. That’s how I have felt plenty of
times in my life, but the first time I remember like it was yesterday. I was in tall
green grass and the sunlight was as bright
as a white, perfect smile. I don’t know
what brought me out of this near-death
daze. Once I woke up, I was drenched in
sweat. His arm was still around my neck. I

fall 2017

followed his instructions. Once I was free,
I grabbed my six-month-old son off my
bed and held him so tight. I’m still holding
on to that day. Death was whispering in
one ear, while life was singing in the other.
Since that day, my life has been foreign.
I’ve changed a lot since then, and I’ve
had to learn to cope and move forward. Chop
(Derrick) helped me do that and then some.
Have you ever felt like it was you
versus you? I struggled with making myself
feel like I belonged on this earth. But I
was literally given a second chance in
life. Chop made a difference. His statement helped me believe life is what you
make it. Set standards. Achieve goals.
Set trends. Make statements. If it comes,
let it; if it goes, let it. Life does go on.
Tomorrow won’t hold the same problems
or pain as yesterday. Yesterday will not
hold the same passion or pleasure as today.

“There’s beauty behind the struggle.”

No matter what has been said or done
in life, things can be fixable if you strive.
Through guilt and guidance, pressure
and progress, homelessness and hustles, love and lessons, I have become
a better person. I have learned I do not
have to be ashamed of abandonment.
There are many types of struggle.
People struggle with relationships, school
subjects/assignments, finances, and shelter.
There are even physical struggles (sight,
speech or weight). We have choices within
each struggle; will we let that one situation define our actions or aspirations?
Or will we overcome it and use it as a
turning point or an example to do better.

43

I am striving to break through a storm,
a storm that many people go through in
different ways, aspects, and situations. I
am a living example. I used to run and hide
from my struggles. Now I embrace and find
solutions for them. My advice to any outsider looking in or insider looking out: let
people see your success, not your struggles.
Always remember there is beauty behind it.

and motivation to get through life, and
break out of its many negative scenarios.

“You have two ears
and one mouth; you
should listen as much
as you talk; you’ll get
further in life.”
Mheron Doage

Mheron Doage is my son’s father,
and out of all the things he’s ever said
to me, this has stuck with me the most.
I tried to win the arguments because
Harry Gill
I loved to talk. But I couldn’t win.
Listening is a critical key in life. If
I was sitting in a hotel lounge trying
we don’t listen, how can we learn? I
to relieve some stress. I started a friendly
know for a fact no one knows everything.
conversation with this guy, Harry Gill,
Often people judge a situation, person or
CEO of a few enterprises. He had flown in
idea based on aesthetics or what things
for a conference from Canada and had just
look like. Just because we have two eyes
finished dinner with colleagues. We began
doesn’t mean they are always right. We
a regular conversation about our names, the shouldn’t make opinions using only one
weather outside, how our nights were going. of our five senses. How does what we see
Well it ended up getting deeper -politics, make us feel? How does what we feel
life, and occupations. Once he figured out
make us hear? Open up your horizons,
broaden them, and create a bigger picture.
I was a student, he gave me some really
Overall, life is what we make it. I
good advice. He told me not to be nervous,
but excited about graduation. Then he went had to ask myself, what are my goals,
purposes, and passions? What topic has
on to tell me that every day he goes by the
same concepts, to “be confident, work hard enough significance to make me want
to share with and persuade others?
and treat others how I want to be treated.”
I want to help people become more
Those words stuck with me not only
positive, inspiring, confident, and fobecause they are inspiring, but because
they urged me to find out what steps I can
cused. I want to show people that evcreate to achieve my life goals. It’s intererything does not have to glitter and
shine to hold value. We can use our
esting to see that someone can put life,
disadvantages to create a critical perspecsomething so complex, into simple terms
tive on our lives, morals, and desires.
and principles. Find your determination

“Be confident, work
hard, and treat others how you want to
be treated.”

44

the star

awarded best of visual image

dark flower by mahidely montes

fall 2017

45

By Roberto Alba and Editors

In

the land of the free and home of the
brave, as of September 5, 2017, President
Trump ended the Deferred Action for
Childhood Arrivals (DACA), which made
DACA recipients wonder, “Are we really
free?” If you’re not familiar with DACA or
the reasoning behind it, I can tell you that
DACA protects undocumented immigrants
brought into the United States as a child
so they can have a better life, away from
drugs, human trafficking, and corrupt governments. Learning, understanding, being
able to adapt to several environments -this
is how young Jefferson County teacher and
current DACA recipient Yessica Guerrero
describes her life. Out of all the DACA recipients, every story is different, and this
young lady adds her name to the list of people who want to have their voices heard by
seven billion other people.
“It’s 6 o’clock in the morning. I kneel
down on the shaggy white carpet in my
room and pray. As I pray, I wiggle my knee
caps around because of how uncomfortable
the carpet feels on my knees, but I continue
to stay focused throughout my prayer. I lift
46

myself up and as my hands grasp the edge
of the bed., I get ready for the day. I get
dressed, eat breakfast, and drive to a job I
worked my ass off for. How does that make
me any different? I’m scrutinized by a president who doesn’t want me here. Why? I
don’t know. He hates us. His followers hate
us because they think I’m here to steal a job

“It’s 6 o’clock in the morning.
I kneel down on the shaggy
white carpet in my room and
pray. As I pray, I wiggle my
knee caps around because
of how uncomfortable the
carpet feels on my knees, but
I continue to stay focused
throughout my prayer.
nobody wants. I had to become accustomed
to the American culture before I even knew
it.” –Yessica Guerro
“Fighter,” one of the many words young
Mexicana and DREAMER, twenty-oneyear-old Yessica Guerrero from Mexico
City uses to describe herself. Clawing,
scratching, and reaching for the ultimate
goal of being a legal resident of the U.S. is

what she aimed for. As she was growing up,
she learned to fight for what she wanted in
life before she even knew it.
Nineteen years ago, before her parents made the difficult decision to move
from their hometown of Mexico City to
the United States. Yessica’s father, twenty-one-year-old Lucero, was able to obtain
a Visa of his own and lived in the United
States for a year and worked. He sent his
wife and daughter part of his checks to keep
them steady while he was away. Lucero did
back-breaking work from the time the sun
began to rise and long after the sun set. He
wanted to make sure his family was able
to live comfortably while he was away. A
year later, his girlfriend Cris, who at the
time was nineteen-years-old, pleaded for
her him to either come back or take her and
their daughter with him. The love they had
for each other was inseparable, and soon after, Lucero was able to put together all of
his earnings and had the chance to bring
his family to the Unites States. Their young
daughter, who at the time was three-yearsold, arrived in the back of truck while Cris
arrived by traveling on foot, from Utah to
Oklahoma to (finally) beautiful Colorado,
all in the span of a year. Yessica and her parents found their home.
the star

At four-years-old, living in the
Centennial State, Yessica quickly picked up
the English language from her friendly next
door neighbor.
“To this day I remember his name, and
his name was Kyle. He taught me everything; he taught me how to read and write.”
Having parents who were unfamiliar
with the English language was extremely
difficult. Throughout elementary school,
her parents were not able to help with
English homework or sit down with her to
take the time to test her grammar or punctuation skills.
Since her father worked mornings and
her mother worked nights, Yessica even
walked herself to school every morning
from preschool to fifth grade. Living across
the street from the school, there was no
one to hold her hand and help her cross the
street. She noticed kids her age with their
parents, receiving helpful advice to be safe
and to have a good day.
“Being a little girl who always saw
other kids with their parents in the morning was difficult. Although my parents did
work most of the time, I knew at a young
age why they couldn’t be there all the time.
It was for me, and they wanted me to get
an education.”
fall 2017

It wasn’t always easy learning a foreign
language from scratch. While she was in
class, her peers would communicate around
her in English. Yessica would always act
like she was fluent in English and tried to
speak back to her classmates without knowing what she was actually saying. Her teachers would stay an hour after the day ended to

Paperwork on top of
paperwork, and the chance to
attend college was a blessing.
She set her sights on one
thing, becoming a teacher.
help Yessica with her fluency, punctuation,
and grammar in English. Even though she
had trouble in school, becoming a citizen
was what she always wanted, but as an immigrant, the troubles were only beginning
as she moved further through life.
As she squeezed through grade school
and on to high school, fluent in both English
and Spanish, Yessica was able to grow and
further herself academically. From straight
A’s and being able to declare herself one
of Adam County’s top students in 2014,
she thought she was on her way to a prestigious school. Until she started to apply for

colleges, she didn’t know how difficult it
was going to be as an undocumented student. As an undocumented student, she was
unable to obtain scholarships because of
her legal status. It was devastating. In 2014,
young Yessica was selected for a Daniel’s
Fund scholarship. Unfortunately, her legal
residency kept her from attending a top
notch college.
“I would have to start from scratch all
over again.”
Not knowing what she was going to do
with her life, a tip came from one of her
closest teachers to apply for DACA.
When Yessica applied for DACA, there
was a $495 application fee, and she fit all
of the requirements to be recipient, which
included proof of identity, documents stating she had been physically present in the
U.S. before June 6, 2012, proof that she entered the U.S. before the age of sixteen, and
proof that she did not commit any crimes
since coming to America. (There was a huge
sigh of relief from Yessica as she explained
that moment). Paperwork on top of paperwork, and the chance to attend college was
a blessing. She set her sights on one thing,
becoming a teacher.
Yessica couldn’t use many scholarships
(especially the Daniel’s Fund Scholarship
47

she received in high school) to attend
world-renowned colleges. Hence
begging the question, “Where?”
Community College of Denver
is where Yessica ended up. She had
become a temporary citizen and was
not afraid to chase her dreams along
with the other hundreds and thousands of people eligible for deportation relief. But she had no money
to pay for a higher education. With
her inability to pay $2,292 every semester without financial aid coming
from the state, she had to act quickly. Without anything in her pocket,
she received help to find the DACA
scholarships that ultimately helped
her pay for college.
Not letting a single penny go to
waste, she committed herself and
her time to becoming a teacher. Not
just any teacher, she wanted to influence the youth and the people
around her, like the teacher who
stayed after class to help Yessica
grow and expand as a person.

48

In her last year in college, Yessica
paid close attention to the political
drama surrounding the presidential elections. Nothing had terrified
Yessica more than watching, in her
words, a “racist, sexist, bigot” be-

On September 5th, a
little less than a year
after he was elected
president, Donald J.
Trump repealed the
DACA program and sent
hundreds and thousands
of people back into
the shadows and to the
confines of their homes.
come president. Unfortunately, he
did become president, and thoughts
of him sitting in the oval office shook
Yessica, this country, and this world.
On September fifth, a little less
than a year after he was elected

president, Donald J. Trump repealed
the DACA program and sent hundreds and thousands of people back
into the shadows and to the confines of their homes. When asked
about how it would feel to be sent
back to Mexico, Yessica responded, “What’s devastating is that I’ve
been here my whole life. I don’t
know another place called home
besides here. I wouldn’t feel safe,
I have no connections and I don’t
know anybody there. I would have
to start from scratch all over again.”
It’s 2017 and people are being
ripped away from their homes. They
are being thrown out, not because
they’re murderers or rapists, but because they came from somewhere
else and decided that they wanted
better lives -better lives, not just for
themselves, but for their kids and
families as well. It’s harsh to have to
live in the United States as an immigrant. You earn everything yourself
just to have it all taken away.

the star

artwork by daniel ferry

by christina sterling
CHAOS IS THE LIFE OF A COLLEGE
student. A life filled with
exams, early morning lectures,
and graveyard studying
shifts. The average college
student rarely seeks additional
work. However, 5th semester
Community College of Denver
(CCD) student, 21-year-old,
Kavyka Sosa, is not only a
fulltime student, but he is
an accomplished amateur
boxer in the Denver area.
“I’m always doing
something. If I’m not in
class, I’m at work. If I’m
not at work, I’m in the gym
or doing homework. I’m
always doing something. I
don’t really balance it.”
In early 2017, Sosa became
the Colorado State Champion,
and the New Mexico Regional
Champion. In addition, Sosa is
one of the youngest members
of the World Boxing Council,
and he was recently promoted to
head of the boxing program at
The Red Shield Salvation Army
in Denver where he trains.
Originally from Maui,
Hawaii, Sosa moved to
fall 2017

the Rocky Mountain state
specifically to box and to
attend CCD. He accredits
his success in school to
his success in the ring.
“I don’t think I’d take
school as serious if I wasn’t
in Colorado. When I’m here,
I’m away from my family
and I’m learning. I’m here to try
and get a degree and [to] box,
and so far, I’d consider myself
successful. All the steps I take
help me fulfill those dreams.”

What was the
hardest part
about moving
to Denver?
I wanted to attend school
out here, but I had to find a
trainer. No one wanted to
train me. I had to find a train
and gym all by myself, all
I had was someone to hold
my pads during a match.

Did you
eventually find
a trainer?
My first trainer was amazing.
He taught me plenty before

he had to relocate to Utah. I
was heartbroken. Before he
left, he referred me to The Red
Shield Salvation Army boxing
program, which is where I
found my current trainer.

have nearly same amount of
experience. They also had
coaches; I started without a
coach and made it that far, and
I felt I did really well for my
first fight at a national level.

Did the absence
of a trainer
affect your
performance in
the ring?

What does
success mean
to you?

It pushed me harder. I started
winning and kept winning. I
became the Colorado State
Champion, and then I traveled
to Regionals in New Mexico.
I made it all the way to the
Golden Gloves in Lafayette,
Louisiana. That’s when coaches
started to take interest in me.

How did
the lost in
Lafayette make
you feel about
boxing?
Well every other boxer in
my division had at least 25
fights behind their name. I
only had eight fights. I was
one of the youngest and didn’t

Success means fulfilling a
dream. That might not mean
reaching the big end goal
every time, but the steps
you took mean something.
Every step you take towards
your dream is success.

What are your
plans after CCD?
I plan on enrolling into Denver
Health Medical Centers
Emergency Medical Technician
program. I want to study fire
science to become a fire fighter.
I still plan on boxing, but in that
world, anything can happen.
I want [need] a backup plan.
There’s isn’t a day that goes by
that I don’t think about being a
firefighter or boxing. I know I
can conquer in and out the ring.
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